Not Your Time, 'Ponine
by CrazyJulz16
Summary: Éponine survived the end of, "A Little Fall of Rain," and now things get interesting. She must face the consequences of revealing her feelings, and now she's caught up in the middle of the dangerous battle for freedom. What does Marius have to say? Well, to find out she has to live through this.
1. Chapter 1

_A.N. I am obsessed with _Les Misérables_ the musical, and I finally decided to write a fanfiction for it. I am a Marius/Éponine shipper, so naturally, that is what I wrote. This is based off a game my cousin and I played once, where I was in a production of Les Mis. with Nick Jonas (because we had to have celebrities involved,) and he was playing Marius like he did in the 25__th__ Anniversary Concert. However, I don't like Cosette and didn't want to play her part. So I decided that the directors would change the story so that Marius and Éponine got together, and I would play Éponine. But anyway, this is the way that story worked. This story will start at the end of _"A Little Fall of Rain." _Everything until then will have been the same as the musical. It will be in Éponine's point of view unless I state otherwise. Sorry for the super-long author's note. Enjoy._

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_"And rain,"_ I sang weakly.

_"And rain,"_ he echoed.

"_Will make the flowers,"_ I began.

_"Will make the flowers,"_ he repeated softly. I was about to finish the line, but I found that I didn't have the strength. My eyes drifted closed, and as if from far away, I heard him sing the end of the song. Then everything went black, and I drifted.

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When my eyes opened and light assaulted them, I was shocked. Why hadn't I died? 'Because my life couldn't be that simple,' I answered myself. 'Now I have to deal with the consequences of telling Marius how I feel.' As this thought occurred, and I acknowledged that I wasn't dead, I became aware of a horrid pain in my shoulder. 'I must have been shot there. That explains why I didn't die, at least partially. But there must have been a doctor to stop me from bleeding out,' I deliberated.

It was about then that I realized I wasn't alone. Someone else was here, wherever 'here' was. A man stepped out of the shadows with a candle in a holder. He set in on the table that I was lying on, and I recognized the walls of the café in the flickering light. 'Okay, so I'm at the café, lying on a table, have a shoulder wound, and am not dead. Strange.'

"Ah, you are awake! How is your shoulder? I am sure it pains you, but I did the best I could, and the bleeding has stopped," the man stated.

"I-I'm fine. It hurts as you said, but at least I'm not dead. What happened? I thought I was going to die! And where's Marius? Is he all right? And who are you?"

"So many questions! I am Joly, a friend of Marius. When you collapsed, he called for help. He thought you were dead, but I could tell that you weren't. I am a medical student, by the way. I could probably become a doctor at this point; I have all the training I need. * But I stopped the bleeding and saved you. Marius wanted to stay by your side, but he had to go help Enjolras on the battlements. Enjolras was almost shot, but Marius saved him. They are both fine. I sent them to rest. In fact, I myself must get back to the fight. Don't get up, and try to rest the shoulder," Joly instructed.

He left, taking the candle with him, and I shivered in the dark. 'Marius has been fighting? I hope he really is unhurt, though I suppose the doctor would know. And I hope Joly will be all right as well; he seems nice.' A twinge of pain ran through my body, ripping me out of my thoughts momentarily. 'My shoulder hurts so badly! I'm surprised Marius cared enough to get help. Won't that make his pretty little Cosette jealous? Oh no, how is he going to react to me being alive now that I told him how I felt? Then again, he got help for me after I told him, so he must still want to be my friend. But what if he just felt compelled to, and he doesn't care about me at all? I need to stop this line of thought before I go insane. I should just go back to sleep,' I concluded.

As this thought ran through my troubled mind, I grew sleepy. My eyes slid shut without my permission.

I dreamt of swimming deep in the water of an endless ocean. It was so beautiful. I could see the light dancing on the surface, and the deep blue of the water was entrancing. I swan around for a little while, marveling in the gorgeousness of the moment. It was not to last, though. "Éponine? Hello? 'Ponine, wake up!" Called a voice. I obeyed and began swimming toward the surface. As my head broke into open air, I opened my eyes.

"'Ponine! You're okay!" Marius exclaimed. He leaned down over me and enveloped me in his arms. I weakly hugged him back with my uninjured arm.

"I thought you were going to die," he whispered into my hair. I let out a weak laugh.

"I'm not letting you off that easy, Monsieur Marius. But better me than you," I replied quietly.

"Never. You are much more important than I could ever be," he answered fervently as he pulled back to look me in the face. I shook my head.

"But you are part of this revolution! I'm worthless compared to you!" He shook his head even more feverishly than I had and returned to hugging me.

"No, 'Ponine, you're not." He gripped me tighter. "But it doesn't matter. I'm not going to let you get hurt again. I'm getting you out of here. This isn't your fight, and I wouldn't be able to live with myself if you got hurt because of me again. That's why I tried to send you away in the first place, but you wouldn't listen."

"You know me; stubborn to the end," I joked.

"You little idiot, 'Ponine," he muttered as he pulled away once more. "You little idiot."

"That's me," I retorted.

"You have no idea how worried I was. I thought you _died!_ I don't know if I could go on if you died," Marius admitted. I gulped as I saw the tears in his eyes. 'He actually means it! So I do matter to him, at least as a friend.'

"You'd be fine. You have your pretty little Cosette, what do you need me for?" I couldn't keep all the bitterness out of my tone, but I didn't spit _her_ name the way I wanted to.

"Cosette could never replace you, 'Ponine." He began to sing quietly, stroking my hair as he did so.

"_You're the rushing river/ flowing to the sea/ no boundaries on this river/ you always will be free._

"_Everything in your path/ everyone you meet/ is altered by your waters/ that's how it's meant to be._

"_You have changed my whole life / you have changed me so/ our friendship has moved us both/ through both the high and low._

"_I'm so glad I met you/ since I learned your name/ I have relished our friendship/ I hope you feel the same." **_

He ended the song, and I felt tears fill my eyes. 'He really does care!' I reflected as I threw my good arm around his neck to hug him tightly. He hugged me back just as fiercely, and I grinned again through the overjoyed tears. But then the events of the day caught up with me, my shoulder began to ache, and I grew exhausted.

"So… sleepy," I yawned quietly. Marius chuckled, and I could feel his laugh reverberating through me. He released me, and I lay back down on the table tiredly.

"Sleep now, 'Ponine. Good night." He smiled at me, and I could feel an answering smile on my face as I drifted off.

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* Thank you to Judybear236 for messaging me and fixing my mistake. You're wonderful, and it's nice to know that someone pays as much attention as I do.

** All song lyrics will be written like this (in italics with slashes in between lines.) As to the lyrics: this is a poem I wrote. It is not stolen from anywhere else, but it is also not from the musical. Put music to it in your head, and tell me what you thought of it.

_A.N. So? What did you think of my first chapter? This is my first attempt at a Les Mis. fanfic, so I hope you liked it. Please review and tell me! PLEASE!_


	2. Chapter 2

_A.N. Well, I hope you guys liked the last chapter. I know Jessi and Robert did, and I thank them for their reviews. I'm glad that everyone is reading, but could a couple more of you review? Just so I know what I'm doing wrong and what I'm doing right? Anyway, here's the next chapter, and I hope you all enjoy it._

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I looked down worriedly at the sleeping girl. She was so thin and malnourished to begin with, and I was terrified about what the blood loss would do to her. 'Oh, Éponine, what am I going to do with you?' I thought. 'And more importantly, how am I going to get you out of here? There's a battle raging outside those doors, a battle that I'm not even sure I want to be part of anymore. Enjolras is still down due to exhaustion, Gavroche is going to lose the bottom half of his right leg, Courferac has passed on, and Joly is out there fighting when he should be helping the wounded! I never comprehended how brutal this fight for freedom would be.' *

"I can't let you stay here, who knows what will happen to you? If you got hurt because of me, it would destroy me, 'Ponine." I then realized that I was speaking out loud, and the girl in question was beginning to stir. "No, no, Éponine. Sleep," I told her gently as I set a hand on her unhurt right shoulder. When she continued to squirm uncomfortably on the table, I began to hum the lullaby my mother had sung to me when I was young and having a nightmare. It soon transformed into soft singing.

_"Sleep now little darling/ let my singing soothe you/ sleep for now, dearest one/ make you dreams come true._

_"Quiet down and hush now/ just listen to my song/ when you are in my arms/ nothing can be wrong._

_"Let me hold you close now/ I will save you from fear/ nightmares will go away/ when I'm with you, dear._

_"Go to sleep now, sweetheart/ quiet now, don't you cry/ slumber till the morning/ in my lullaby." **_

Éponine settled, and I realized that in her twisting, the hand that I had placed on her shoulder had landed on her cheek. I should have moved it immediately, but I found myself entranced as I stared at the sleeping girl. Now that she had calmed, she looked so peaceful. I realized with a start that my friend was beautiful. She was thin, tired, and haggard, but she was still lovely. Her skin seemed to glow, and I suddenly wanted her to open her expressive eyes.

The red stain on her white shirt was painful to see, and I felt that it was my fault that it was there. I had sullied this angel, and she bled because of me.

"I'm sorry, 'Ponine," I whispered. "This is all my fault. I got us into this, but I'm going to get you out. If I don't survive this, fine, but I'm not getting you killed. You're too important for that." A tear dripped down my nose and landed on her pale cheek. My fingers moved without my command and tenderly wiped the droplet away. Then I leaned down and gently laid my lips on her fair skin.

She shifted, and I quickly tore my lips off of her cheek. She simply rolled over onto her side with a sigh and settled down again. I stared at her back as my thought roiled like the angry sea during a storm. 'What am I _doing_?!' I thought frantically. 'What if she had woken up? What would I say then? She might get the wrong idea.'

'You just kissed her! What idea did you _want_ her to get?' My brain retorted.

'I kissed her on the cheek, not the lips! And I'm just worried about her wellbeing. She just got shot, after all!'

'Then why were you thinking about how beautiful she is?'

Then the girl in question gave a whimper, and I realized that I was mentally arguing with myself. I forced myself to stop thinking about it.

"Éponine? Are you alright?" I asked apprehensively. She let out another small cry. "It's just a bad dream, 'Ponine. Wake up. You're safe." She didn't answer, and my worry increased.

"Éponine!" I called a bit louder. I reached out to shake her shoulder and discovered that it was her uninjured one. 'She's laying on her hurt shoulder; that's the problem.' Without a second thought, I slid my arms under her while being mindful of her wound. After a moment, I lifted her up and settled her on the table again. She looked so frail and uneasy lying there, and she began writhing again. I scooped her up again and pulled her into my lap.

"Easy there. I'm here, and it's okay," I comforted. At the sound of my voice, she ceased her struggles and relaxed in my grip. I thought she had fallen back into a deep sleep, but then her wavering voice cut through the air.

"Marius? Is that you?" I froze, but she didn't seem uncomfortable as she sat up. She looked around in front of her, and I ascertained that she was looking for me.

"Yes, it's me," I replied quietly. I watched her stiffen as she figured out that she was sitting on my lap. She turned slowly to look at me, and her eyes showed confusion.

"I think you… you were having a nightmare," I explained awkwardly as I rubbed the back of my neck.

"Yeah, I was. I feel like I should have died. It would have saved everyone a lot of trouble, and you wouldn't be having doubts about your pretty little Cosette. It would be better for everyone if I just walked out there now and got shot," she declared sadly. I could see tears running down her face in small clean streaks against the dirt as she turned away.

"No, it wouldn't," I told her quietly. She didn't reply above sniffing. "It's not your time, 'Ponine." I drew her into a tight hug while avoiding her damaged shoulder. She began sobbing into my shoulder, and I tried to calm her.

"I just feel so useless! I tried to help you, and I ended up being shot! Now I'm just a liability to you. I never wanted to put you in danger, Marius. I'm so sorry." She began weeping again.

"It's okay, Éponine," I comforted her. Then I let out the words that I had been keeping back since I had held her as she died (or so I thought.) "I love you."

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_A.N. I know that Les Misérables is all song, but I obviously can't write like that. That's why I write one song per chapter. Tell me how you like the lyrics. I figured I'd put in Marius's confusion about his feeling for Éponine vs. his feelings for Cosette. How did I do? And what did you think of the chapter? Review and tell me!_

_* I know this isn't what happens in the musical, but I figured this would be easier. I decided that Éponine living would probably change things a little bit anyway. So not everyone is going to die._

_** This is another original. I imagine it as a mixture of the tune to "Zira's Lullaby," from The Lion King 2, and the tune to "You'll be in My Heart," from Tarzan. You can imagine your own tune if you like._


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